How many times have you thought you would LOVE to knit a jumper? Or sew a dress? Or paint something to hang on your wall? Then you realise there is a whole lot to do between steps A and B and you think better of it. Well fortunately there is really no need to give up at the first hurdle, you just have to be realistic and accept that everyone, even the pros, have to start with the basics. Not that these can’t yield satisfying results: a beginner knitting for an hour most evenings (whilst catching up on a box-set you might have missed) can easily produce a jumper like WATG’ Push It Sweater in a couple of months (ready in time for winter!) First-time sewers can have Merchant & Mills Trapeze Dress in a weekend, with time left over to get started on a paint-by-numbers kit before Strictly. If you find the idea of practicing techniques unrewarding, these kinds of projects will be both productive in themselves and develop your skills for future, more complex projects.

Next week I will look at how much it can cost to invest in hobbies and how you can try-before-you-buy

Have you made any super-simple projects which turned out amazingly? Let me know! x

Merchant & Mills Trapeze Dress

Push It Sweater by Wool and the Gang